Triumph Through Tragedy
by Solaris Nightfire
Summary: There is a huge crash in the first race of the year for our team and Solaris loses both of his brothers and one of his sons from the sheer violence of the crash and barely pulls through himself but his remaining pups and mate are all he has Broken but not out Solaris seeks to rebuild his team and make the comeback of a lifetime no one will soon forget. Collab with various authors.
1. Prologue

It was a bitter cold Sunday afternoon in 1928 in Nome. The terrain was hard and slick with a small bit of fresh power from the storm that had been passing through Alaska the last few days and the conditions today were sunny skies but it was only like 25 degrees outdoors in the direct sun. Perfect racing conditions. And Solaris and his team were chomping at the bit to get this thing off of the ground and get going. Today was the biggest race of the season for them and their chances of winning were at really really good odds. There were only about 25 other teams competing so that made for a pretty easy week for them. But with all these thrilling emotions Solaris was a bit uneasy for some reason something really really bad was going to happen out there this year. The last time they ran in these conditions two teams did not make it to the finish line in one piece and he had his concerns they'd be next in line for this to happen and he was vocal about it too.

"Guys I really don't like the way this terrain is looking. the last time we all raced in these conditions two other teams we competed with lost team members to horrific crashes on the first day. I'm just really concerned about our welfare out here"

"So are you insinuating we shouldn't compete or something this year?" His red and black cloaked brother Kallisto asked "What's the worst that could happen bro. this is not our first time on this kind of terrain you know. We'll be fine" He added encouragingly trying to lighten his brother's mood up

"No its just that I don't want to loose anyone or worse everyone in an accident that was avoidable by postponing this start until next weekend" he shook his head "I know most of the mushers want to go as soon as possible because this is good racing conditions but the problem is it also extremely slick and and lack of control is at a premium out here. On top of that I've been hearing there's a storm in the mountains and that can be super dangerous as well. I know I sound like I'm a huge coward suddenly but I just cant entertain or bear the thought of life without you all" Solaris nervously said in reply

"Just trust me bro its going to all be fine. You'll see soon enough" Kallisto shook his head back in reply. This was so unlike Solaris. Normally he'd be ready to crawl out of his fur in enticipation for the start with these kind of conditions but his cautious and timid demeanor today was really concerning him. Was he right that it was bad idea? That was the question on everyone's minds now but the only way they would find out was once they got out there on the trails.

'I sure hope you're wrong bro. We've all been looking foward to this week for months. the last thing this town needs is another tragedy' Kallisto thought to his self silently. Sadly little did anyone know of the hell that was soon to befall them all... 


	2. Sometimes Being Right Is Not Easy

Not even twenty minutes into the run the trail conditions had already went to hell in a handbasket and traction was declining fast. Visabilty was also becoming a problem as well and Solaris and his team were about another 20 miles from a checkpoint. The visability had deteriated to about less than a 1/8 mile in any direction and they were seriously considering stopping for a few moments in the next town or safe spot they could find until the storm cleared up or broke a bit.

"Guys I hate it as much as you all but I don't like the way this weather pattern is moving right now. I am seriously considering pulling off in the next town we pass through. I don't want to chance losing anyone in this fuckin mess out here right now" Johan said a bit dejectedly to his team, he was no rookie at mushing and he had already lost friends to this kind of stuff before "I don't know what you all want to do but I say we dont risk it, We all know what happened last time someone did..." he shuttered at the thought of that incident and trailed off

One year earlier. January 1927..

Conditions were absolutely atrocious on the out on the trail through White Mountain and there was nearly zero visability for miles. The trails had begun to freeze over in the mountain passes due to rapidly declining tempatures and about halfway through special stage 2 one of the teams had a big moment that seriously injured their musher and two members of the team in the process. As they attempted to round a sharp corner they hit a patch of the dreaded and infamous white ice the mountain trails were famous for and as their musher attempted to correct them they overcorrected and their sled spun around backwards sending them down a steep embankment at the the summit of the mountain that they'd been on. As they slid backwards they slammed into a huge tree backwards at full speed and the percussiveness of the the impact snapped their guideline scattering the whole team in every possible direction. In the end the musher of the team laid knocked out with a severely fractured shoulder. a shattered wrist, 4 broken ribs and several bruses and cuts from the impact's force. His team did not fare much better as his lead dog took a huge hit as well and had severely shattered ankle, three cracked ribs, a mild concussion and several gashes and abbrasions from rolling down the hill. They also had all of their equipment completely obliterated in the process.

Back to present:

In all it was an expensive accident that cost this team almost $5,000 in damages and medical expenses. Something that no one this year could afford and this is what Johan was concerned about and out of options he dejectedly decided it would be safe to give some time up in the interest of their safety. These mountains were not safe with this kind of visabilty and god only knew how icy it probably was and would be tomorrow when they did attack them to make up some lost time form the extended layover. That was if race stewards had not already scratched them from the event for being lost on trail.

"I'm sorry guys, this weather is just too serious, We can't risk hitting some white ice in the mountains and wind up driving off the side of a cliff wide open. It's just too dangerous to chance it this time" Johan said to his team a bit frustrated they'd have to give up so much time but safety and making it home in one piece was their priority at that point in time

"We'll have to haul some serious ass tomorrow though you do realize this?" Solaris said to him in reply "We can't afford to lose any more time than we did tonight tomorrow because if we do we are done for this go around" he added...

After a brief pause to think about and access the situation Solaris spoke his opinion on the matter

"Personally I think we should just call this one done and turn back, this is a pre-season run and does not count towards our championship hopes this year. you know what Balto would want us to do if he was on this run with us dude" Solaris said.

"I hate quitting but we need to get back in one piece the championship race is in three weeks and we cannot afford to take any losses or blows to this team in prep for such an important race for our townspeople" he added

"I think we've gathered enough data for this run to know what we will be dealing with out here in a few weeks. Besides we can use this time to strategize and spend some of this energy on training properly for this run" Johan said "Alright then it is settled, We'll head back to Nome in the morning if we can see where the hell we are going" he added

"Get some rest because tomorrow is going to be a super long run back into town, We will not stop until we are home" he instructed everyone.

"And listen I know they say you'll never be great without taking a chance but I think this was one not worth the possible outcome, If there is one thing I have learned in the 12 years I have done this is that you don't fuck around with mother nature because she can be a ruthless cold bitch if you cross her" He said as he unharnessed everyone for the layover.  



End file.
